PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Artemisinin-based combination treatments have been the mainstay of treatment for falciparum malaria in Southeast Asia for more than 10 years and are now increasingly recommended as first-line treatment throughout the rest of the world. RECENT FINDINGS: A large multicentre randomised trial conducted in East Asia has shown a 35% reduction in mortality from severe malaria following treatment with parenteral artesunate compared with quinine. There is increasing evidence that artemisinin-based combination treatments are safe and rapidly effective. Artemether-lumefantrine (six doses) has been shown to be very effective in large trials reported from Uganda and Tanzania. A once daily three-dose treatment of dihydroartemisinin piperaquine, a newer fixed combination, was a highly efficacious and well tolerated treatment for multi-drug resistant falciparum malaria in Southeast Asia. SUMMARY: Early diagnosis and treatment of uncomplicated malaria with effective drugs remains a priority as part of a comprehensive malaria control strategy. Artemisinin-based combination treatments have consistently been shown to be highly effective and safe. The challenge is to make them accessible in tropical countries.
PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Artemisinin-based combination treatments have been the mainstay of treatment for falciparum malaria in Southeast Asia for more than 10 years and are now increasingly recommended as first-line treatment throughout the rest of the world. RECENT FINDINGS: A large multicentre randomised trial conducted in East Asia has shown a 35% reduction in mortality from severe malaria following treatment with parenteral artesunate compared with quinine. There is increasing evidence that artemisinin-based combination treatments are safe and rapidly effective. Artemether-lumefantrine (six doses) has been shown to be very effective in large trials reported from Uganda and Tanzania. A once daily three-dose treatment of dihydroartemisinin piperaquine, a newer fixed combination, was a highly efficacious and well tolerated treatment for multi-drug resistant falciparum malaria in Southeast Asia. SUMMARY: Early diagnosis and treatment of uncomplicated malaria with effective drugs remains a priority as part of a comprehensive malaria control strategy. Artemisinin-based combination treatments have consistently been shown to be highly effective and safe. The challenge is to make them accessible in tropical countries.
Authors: Rachel D Slack; Bryan T Mott; Lauren E Woodard; Abhai Tripathi; Abhai Triphati; David Sullivan; Elizabeth Nenortas; Sonya C T Girdwood; Theresa A Shapiro; Gary H Posner Journal: J Med Chem Date: 2011-12-15 Impact factor: 7.446
Authors: Jin Guo; Armand W Guiguemde; Annael Bentura-Marciano; Julie Clark; Richard K Haynes; Wing-Chi Chan; Ho-Ning Wong; Nicholas H Hunt; R Kiplin Guy; Jacob Golenser Journal: Antimicrob Agents Chemother Date: 2011-10-17 Impact factor: 5.191
Authors: Timothy M E Davis; Michelle England; Anne-Marie Dunlop; Madhu Page-Sharp; Nathalie Cambon; Thomas G Keller; János L Heidecker; Kenneth F Ilett Journal: Antimicrob Agents Chemother Date: 2006-12-18 Impact factor: 5.191
Authors: Steven J Burgess; Audrey Selzer; Jane Xu Kelly; Martin J Smilkstein; Michael K Riscoe; David H Peyton Journal: J Med Chem Date: 2006-09-07 Impact factor: 7.446
Authors: Andrew S Rosenthal; Xiaochun Chen; Jun O Liu; Diana C West; Paul J Hergenrother; Theresa A Shapiro; Gary H Posner Journal: J Med Chem Date: 2009-02-26 Impact factor: 7.446